The Crystal Thief

Farendale

It was as if the teeth of autumn had shattered from biting back the cold for too long, and the kiss of a new season landed as softly and as silently as the first snowflakes of winter. The trees and lowly vegetation of Farendale were still clad in their autumn leaves, brilliant oranges and magentas clinging to their branches, reluctant to fall. Some animals, however, were tucked within the warm folds of the earth, hibernating while others had migrated to warmer zones for the season. The faeries, dryads and elves wrapped themselves in winter clothing, refusing to let the cooler weather halt their daily activities.

Long ago, the elven city of Farendale mysteriously arose within a modest forest, spanning only about two-hundred or so acres, strewn with lush and colorful flora, covering almost every cliff and crevice. The timeworn dwelling was comprised of elegant and elaborate architecture, with tall, thin towers sweeping up into the emergent layer of forest. Farendale forest was an ancient mystical land, much like the other regions of Iirdenfel, which were often inhabited by humans or other foul creatures. The once-flourishing elven towns that covered much of the landscape, lay in ruin.

It was just a few hours before the Lunar Diamond, and though the season had already arrived, the cold had waited until now to make its appearance. In a few hours, when the sun is out, at its shortest, Avarin, the mother moon and her two sisters, Luxea and Scinon will align to create a diamond with Solaris positioned in the southern hemisphere and Avarin in the northern hemisphere, just above Farendale. At this time, Avarin's light would be strongest and the Farendale dryads must capture it to ensure the future survival of their race.

Aledai glanced at the circle of dryads sitting in an open patch. There were five of them, part elf, part doe, part tree, gathered around a stone brazier, soaking up the fire's warmth and conversing about the Lunar Diamond. The dryads were a peculiar race, comprised solely of females. There were about thirty or so of them in total. And the only way to further the population of their race was to perform their ages-old ritual on the eve of the Lunar Diamond. During this ritual, the dryads take the Lunar crystal, a multifaceted, compound focusing gem, rumored to be gifted to the dryads by Avarin herself and place it just so that the moon's light pours into it and washes over the trees. Before the appearance of the Lunar Crystal, the population had slowly dwindled down to a handful of sickly dryads on their way to total extinction. However, upon its discovery, the dryads began using it to focus the moon's beams on the ancient tree of life, from which the next generations of dryads were born. They emerged from the earth, like tree roots rising out of the soil, clad in a heavy bark.

Aledai never truly understood the dryad race, or the other elves for that matter, and she was unsure whether anyone understood her at all. Her mother, Araia was of elven descent and her father was a lowly human who had enticed her mother into one fleeting night of passion, on which Aledai was conceived. Araia was threatened with exile when Aledai was born; her diluted elven features quickly giving her mother's affair away. However, she was granted permission to stay in Farendale, so long as she never brought her forbidden lover into the sanctity of the elven domain. The other condition was that Aledai would never be allowed to marry or conceive children within the forest. Mjira the elven High-Queen, and Grand-Magus forbade the intertwining of human and elven blood and swore to punish those who refused to obey her rule. She vehemently believed and insisted that humans were lowly, non-magical vermin who destroy everything they meet. And while Araia knew it to be true that unlike the elves, humans could not do magic, she found them considerably more charming than Mjira painted them to be. Araia and Aledai could remain in the forest so long as they kept Mjira's terms, though they were never welcomed there. Araia was ridiculed and Aledai was born an outcast, never to effortlessly perform magic or fit in with the other elves.

She turned the page of her spellbook, her eyes pouring over the words soaking them up, though she still didn't understand the necessity of it. She didn't know if she'd ever be able to do magic, and silently cursed her mother under her breath. The other elves her age could easily do chant incantations and perform spells with a flick of the wrist and a click of the tongue, but she could do neither. She understood the reasoning behind Grand-Magus, Mjira's harsh commandments; if humans diluted the elven bloodline, magic would be lost to the forest-dwellers within a few generations. It was a trait unique and essential to the elves and one that Aledai just didn't seem to possess.

Like her father, Aledai had dark, unruly hair which fell to her hips and silver-blue eyes which she inherited from her mother. She was tall and thin, like the other elves but her face always gave her human descent away. Unlike the sharp, hawk-like features of her elven contemporaries, she sported soft, rounded eyes faceted like gems within a elegant, angular visage. Her skin was a warm, tawny brown and striking against the other elves' fair skin. She was in many ways, noticeably different from the elves and this fact was made known to her again and again over the years.

Aledai closed the book and sighed, frustrated with herself and her lack of magical abilities. In just a few short hours the Lunar Diamond would once again be upon her and Mjira would require all of the elves to aid the dryads in their ritual and once again, Aledai would disappoint. For years she prayed to Oscerin, asking her and her sisters if one day they would grant her the gift of magical powers, but every time they remained silent.

She looked up at the circle of dryads again. They were a strange and relatively peaceful people. Though she rarely spoke to any of them, they didn't outright make her feel like an outsider, which was refreshing from the constant ridicule from her elven neighbors. The believed in peace and tranquility within the forests of Farendale and were usually the ones to keep the peace if conflict arose.The dryads were half doe and half elf, leaves and vines sprouting out of their hair and coats. They were completely nude, save for the bows and quivers tethered to their backs and the six silver bracers they wore on their elven wrists and atop their hooves. Aledai wondered how they managed to keep warm during the winter with so little covering their bodies. There was another dryad, though, who caught her attention. She was called Vithir and was the only one Aledai knew by name. Vithir was taller than the other dryads and unlike the rest, she had pale purple skin and lavender coat. Her hair was a deep purple and flowed like a waterfall down her back and over her breasts. Her eyes glowed a brilliant white, far brighter than any of the other dryads, and possibly even brighter than any of the elves' eyes. Vithir was the dryad high-mystic and usually led most of their hunts or celestial rituals. She was rarely seen around the city, but wandering elves usually stumbled upon her in the forest. She had joined the other dryads for the Lunar Diamond set to occur within a few hours and preparations were to be made.